benp
Neophyte
Posts: 3
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Post by benp on Sept 9, 2014 13:16:54 GMT -5
Hello,
I been making chocolate for a few years by melting & mixing ingredients in a bain marie, tempering by hand, then using a large measuring spoon to put the chocolate into moulds.
Does anyone have any suggestions for making the weight of the bars consistent? Any techniques or machinery? It seems the traditional way is to overfill the moulds and then scrape off the excess with a pallet knife, but the moulds I have are quite thin plastic... maybe I'll hve to invest in decent polycarbonate moulds. I read the thread that suggests using a syringe - I'll try that next.
The chocolate I sell has "average 70g" on the label, so anything under 70g I write off as a reject. This means we generally aim to put over 70g of chocolate into each mould, rather than under, which results in bars weighing between 70g and 90g. On a good day (for us, not the customers) bars weigh around 70-75g, with the occasional 80g bar.... now we're making hundreds of bars a week, the extra chocolate is adding up!
I'll be very grateful for any advice.
Thanks
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Post by Ben on Sept 9, 2014 13:22:39 GMT -5
Hi Benp, The best way I've found when molding by hand is the syringe mentioned in the other thread and a good scale. I just put the mold on the scale, zero it out if necessary, and then fill with the syringe. It's pretty easy to get the exact amount you want and you can get pretty quick with it. Syringe thread: chocolatetalk.proboards.com/thread/1069/molding-syringe-Ben
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Post by lyndon on Sept 9, 2014 13:29:30 GMT -5
Finding a really big syringe is the tricky part but you get the smoothest layer if you submerge the tip when you are filling the moulds. I have not tried using a ladle yet, but I always do it on scales, with my vibrating table on top of the scales and the mould obviously on the top of that.
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benp
Neophyte
Posts: 3
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Post by benp on Sept 9, 2014 13:50:40 GMT -5
Thanks for both of your amazingly quick replies.
Ben - how many bars are you making using the syringe method? I'm worried about RSI - currently we're making around 300 bars in a batch, once or twice a week.
I did try a syringe a while ago, but found it very difficult - but reading the tip about lubricating the plunger with melted cacao butter sounds good.
Lyndon - you just gave be a great idea, buy scales large enough to put the mould on top as we're spooning the chocolate into the moulds, so we can weigh the chocolate as we ladle it! Quite obvious now...!
Thanks again... any other suggestions gratefully received.
Does anyone use machinery to dispense / deposit chocolate?
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Post by cheebs on Sept 10, 2014 1:46:57 GMT -5
Chocolate has an approximate density of 1.27 grams per cc. So for example if you need a 50 gram bar divide 50/1.27 = 39.37cc, just round out to 40. This gives repeatable, measurable results every time. I've found syringes as large as 150cc.
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Post by lyndon on Sept 10, 2014 3:18:27 GMT -5
I've seen 200cc syringes, but they are for extracting oil from cars, I presume they would not be rated food safe and so probably not a good idea to use. I tried building a pump for the chocolate but I gave up I suppose the next option would be to copy one of those pulley systems you can buy for the chocovision models, they cost about £600, it lifts chocolate out of the bowl and scrapes it off into a chute.
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Post by Ben on Sept 10, 2014 12:09:54 GMT -5
Thanks for both of your amazingly quick replies. Ben - how many bars are you making using the syringe method? I'm worried about RSI - currently we're making around 300 bars in a batch, once or twice a week. When I was using a Chocovision as my main tempering machine, I would usually do about 150 bars a few times a week. Does anyone use machinery to dispense / deposit chocolate? I now use a Savage Bros. temperer with a depositing pump.
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benp
Neophyte
Posts: 3
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Post by benp on Sept 10, 2014 13:45:42 GMT -5
Cheers cheebs - I had no idea about the density of chocolate, so that figure will really help when trying out a syringe. And thanks Lyndon - I hadn't seen the chocovision skimmer before. Looks like it continuously pours chocolate though - what I'd ideally like is a machine where I can press a button & a set amount of chocolate gets dispensed....like a Savage Bros. temperer with a depositing pump... thanks Ben! Now to see if I can find where to buy one in the UK. What size machine do you have Ben? Can you recommend? How much did you pay? Thanks
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Post by Ben on Sept 10, 2014 22:18:53 GMT -5
I have the 50 lb table top temperer and am very happy with it. I would definitely recommend it. I got a really good deal on a much older, but unused, model from someone online. I wish I had the newer pump, though, as it has a higher capacity than mine.
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Post by Brad on Oct 18, 2014 2:23:33 GMT -5
Sigh.... You guys are making things SOOOO difficult!
Put your bar mold on an electronic scale and tare it (zero it off).
Fill a large plastic beer pitcher with tempered chocolate and pour it into the first mold until you have the weight you want.
Tare the scale
Pour the chocolate
Tare the scale
Pour the chocolate
Tap the mold a few times to settle the chocolate and remove bubbles.
Done.
Consistent weights (within a couple of grams), and no mess from having to scrape molds.
I have one staff member who does about 500 92g bars a day this way.
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Post by lyndon on Oct 19, 2014 8:04:15 GMT -5
I was worried that once you take the chocolate out of the tempering machine it would start to cool too fast Brad if I just had it in a jug. Obviously not, judging by your experience
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Post by Brad on Oct 19, 2014 11:53:11 GMT -5
Lyndon;
The chocolate doesn't stay in the jug for very long - a couple of minutes at most - about the amount of time it takes to pour 12 bars and get them in the fridge. My staff have been trained to pour the contents back into the tempering machine if they have to go do another task - even if that task is as short as answering the phone.
Cheers. Brad
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Post by lyndon on Oct 20, 2014 15:19:49 GMT -5
Ah I see, I would have to pour all of mine into a jug at once, since I just have the Chocovision Rev 5 machine, I don't think there is a way to start/stop it so I can remove the bowl to pour some into a jug and then return it to keep mixing/warm. Dipping a jug in would be messy
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gap
Apprentice
Posts: 390
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Post by gap on Oct 20, 2014 15:36:03 GMT -5
Lyndon - you could ladle it in. Ideally, you would use a metal ladle/jug that had been kept in a warming cabinet so that they were warm, but not so warm as to break the temper of the chocolate. However, if you're working quickly, you don't need to worry about that. I often ladle from a tempering machine into a piping bag and then pipe whatever I need to and then empty back into the tempering machine.
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